I cannot help it. After my alarm goes off at 5:15 in the morning I can do nothing else except stumble down my stairs and crawl into my shower. I plop down on the floor of the tub, turn the water on to a comfortably warm level, and just melt away. Today I did this for 25 minutes, which was about 5 minutes longer than my average of 20 minutes.

Sometimes, while I am sitting there half asleep, I watch the water run down the drain and realize what a luxury I have. At the same time, I realize the enormous amount of waste that empties with each drop of that soothing water, but I cannot help it. It is really one of my few completely thoughtless pleasures in life. It is my meditation.

If you have never tried this, by the way, you really must do it to understand why it has become such a desired habit in my morning routine. Some people hit the snooze button when they wake. I laze on the floor of my shower and watch valuable energy and water go right to waste. I am sorry, but it just feels so good.

If you are wondering, I do realize how much valuable fresh water I waste, and what a prick this makes me. I realize the efforts that some people in developing nations must go through just to get a bucket of drinking water for their family. I also realize the global shortage of freshwater. I just cannot help it. What these morning showers do for me is vital to my sanity.

However, I know I must change this behavior if I want to be more environmentally responsible. Changes in this department will be very hard for me. I know it sounds crazy, but to eliminate these luxury showers from my day would be sacrificing a true pleasure from my life. But, I must do something.

Therefore, tomorrow, for my penance, I will cut my luxury shower time in half. I will only indulge in my morning luxury shower for 10 minutes. I know it is still more than I need, but it is a start. Maybe with the extra time I can try that snooze button I hear so much about.

Comments

I always turn the water off while I am brushing my teeth, but I turn it on way before I am finished. Maybe I think turning on the water speeds up time or something so that I will be finished brushing my teeth sooner.

I saw those people in developing countries. Down in the central mountains of Guatemala I saw children walking up a mountainside (that us Americans of course drove up in a fuel hog truck in only 45min vs their probably 6hr roundtrip hike) to bring buckets of water home. I feel sick to my stomach thinking about it while I sit here and think about how I look at my water pouring out of my sink while I lazily brush my teeth. It is habit, I just keep that luxury water rolling while I sing and brush my teeth. What an ass! I – ME – I am the biggest prick! Tomorrow I am shutting off that water! I’ll put a Guatemala picture on my bathroom sink!